


It Worked In Theory

by CarnivalofBrokenDolls (yourrhinestoneeyes)



Category: Gotham (TV)
Genre: Ed is desperate, Kissing, M/M, Oswald is a horrible ghost, based on a post I made on Tumblr, hallucination oswald
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-04-07
Updated: 2017-04-07
Packaged: 2018-10-16 01:10:21
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,643
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10560844
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/yourrhinestoneeyes/pseuds/CarnivalofBrokenDolls
Summary: Ed wants Oswald to leave him alone, the ghost of his dead ex-friend offers some solutions and theories on ways to make him leave for good.





	

Ed knew that there must be a logical explanation as to why he was being haunted by the hallucination of Oswald Cobblepot. He felt no regret for murdering him, no remorse, or second thoughts, Oswald had hurt him. He had taken the life of an innocent woman, he had lied to him, treated him like some ignorant child who was too dull to realize what was going on. If anything, the murder was necessary, he had taken somebody cruel and uncaring out of the world.

So why was it that he had a soaking wet Oswald perched on the edge of his desk?

He attempted in vain to ignore him, he’d been doing this for a week now. Oswald placed a wet hand over the form that Ed was reading over and making edits to, the water seeped into the paper darkening it and causing the fresh ink to bleed. He sighed in frustrated as he pulled the paper away and threw it into the nearly full trash bin that sat next to him. Another form and another attempt at concentration. These distractions were tiring and quite ridiculous, he didn’t know what he did to deserve this. 

Oswald laid down across the desk completely covering Ed’s work station, Ed pushed his chair back away from the desk. The man behaved much like a cat, irritating and invasive; he held his hand up into the air tapping his fingers as he began singing to himself.

“Oswald….”

“Singing in the rain, just singing in the rain…..What a glorious feeling, I’m happy again…”

“Oswald!” 

Ed stood up, he shoved the chair back hitting it hard against the wall. The sudden noise seemed to just merely annoy the man stretched out over his desk. The singing devolved into humming as Oswald sat up, he moved to the edge of the desk his legs dangling over the edge.

“Yes, my dear?” He asked, a teasing smile on his damp face.

The pet names drove Ed mad, each time that Oswald referred to him as dear or darling there was a mocking nature to the names. Hearing them made him feel sick to his stomach, that smug smile the other man wore on his face also gave Ed a sickened feeling.

“Stop it”

“Stop what?”

“This, all of this, you’ve been here and you rarely leave. When you do leave it’s only for an hour or you come back right when I think I’m finally free of you.”

“Well what do you want me to do about it Ed?”

“Tell me what I have to do to make you go away.”

There had to be something, something that was bothering him that was the reason that this apparition was insistently pestering him.

Oswald tapped his index finger against his chin as he hummed in thought.

“Oh, I know.” He announced happily, a smile on his face.

“What?” Ed asked cautiously

“Well you know that awful thing you did before killing me, where you threw my father’s remains into a dumpster. If you put them back where they belong then I’ll be out of your life.”

Ed thought it over. It wasn’t a crazy or horrible idea, Elijah had done nothing wrong. He’d died long before Ed was really involved in Oswald’s life, his corpse was just unfortunately dragged into the plan. He supposed it was the least he could do, if it meant getting this figment of his imagination to leave him be then it was worth it.

Later that night Ed went out to locate the man’s remains. It hadn’t been easy, not in the least, but around two in the morning he had located the corpse and taken it back to where it actually belonged. By the time the chore was finished it was eight in the morning, he felt grimy, sore, and exhausted by the time he returned to the mansion that at one time belonged to Oswald.  
He felt like he shouldn’t still be living there, but frankly he had no other living options. There had been talk about living with Barbara and Tabitha, but Butch had quickly shut down the offer and even Ed got the feeling that he wasn’t completely welcomed there. 

So, at the manor he remained, it was nicer than any home he’d had previously.

He entered the bathroom that was connected to his room, he removed his filth stained clothes throwing them on the floor knowing that unfortunately he would be throwing them in the trash once he was clean. As he got into the shower he realized he hadn’t seen or heard Oswald all night or morning, it was just himself and his thoughts. For once he felt like he could think clearly, he could get back to his plans for the upcoming chess tournament, he could go through with his ideas for the police academy, and his idea of revenge for those who had mocked him and claimed him to be insane.

Ed smiled to himself as he rinsed the shampoo from his hair. It was perfect, life was finally perfect, and all he had to do was bury a body.

Who knew it was that simple?

A knock at the frosted shower door startled him pulling a small scream from him as he pressed back against the shower wall. The door slid open, Oswald stood on the other side staring at him. Ed stared back in wide eyed shock, chest heaving with heavy breaths, he felt vulnerable and a bit violated when the dead man’s eyes began wandering over his naked form.

“I believe this makes us even for the time you got to see me naked.”

“Why the Hell are you here?”

“Hm? I don’t know, but I’m rather happy that I am.”

“Get out of here.”

“Where do you expect for me to go?”

“Ju-just go wait for me in the bedroom.”

Oswald rolled his eyes, he started to turn away, but gave one more lingering look at Ed’s body before deciding he was satisfied enough to leave.

Ed quickly finished up his shower, he got out grabbing a robe from the hook on the wall next to the shower. He didn’t realize until he stood before the partially fogged mirror that it was the same robe Oswald had let him wear all those nights ago after Butch had nearly killed him. Ed placed his hand against his throat, fingers lightly ghosting over where a vibrant bruise once was, a bruise that Oswald had looked at with worried eyes. 

He forced the memory from his mind and blinked away the tears that had begun forming in his eyes. Ed exited the bathroom to find Oswald sitting on the edge of his bed, he was leaning back slightly with his hands placed on the bed. The way that he was looking at Ed made him feel odd. There was a light to his vibrant green eyes, a wicked show of a smile on his face. 

“My robe, does it still smell like my cologne?”

“What are you doing here, you told me that if I buried your father that you would disappear.”

Again, he rolled his eyes, “I thought that would work, but apparently I was mistaken. We can’t all be perfect my love.”

Ed felt a pain in his chest hearing that, being called that.

“Are you telling me that I just wasted an entire night and part of my morning just so I could come back home to find you waiting for me?”

Oswald got up from the bed and walked up to him, he stopped just a few inches away from him, but Ed still felt he was far too close.

‘You’re standing too close.’

“Home? It took me a long time to get you to think of this as your home, you always felt guilty referring to it that way.”

“What do I have to do?”

Oswald placed his hands against Ed’s chest, his touch was cold and wet. His eyes were focused on Ed’s lips.

“Kiss me”

“What?”

“Look before you put a bullet in me all I had wanted was to simply touch your face, just once. I had no malicious intent, I just wanted to feel you one last time. Perhaps if you kiss me I’ll leave.”

“You aren’t a ghost, you are literally a figment of my imagination.”

Oswald smiled as he met his eyes again, “So you are imagining me begging for a kiss?”

Ed let out a heavy sigh.

“If I do this you’ll leave me alone?”

“Sure”

Carefully Ed placed one hand against the back of Oswald’s head, his fingers curled into the matted soft black locks of hair, his other hand found its way to his hip pulling him closer against him. Oswald wrapped his arms around Ed’s neck holding him closely, with some slight hesitation Ed leaned down pressing his lips to the dead man’s. He was surprised by how warm and soft his lips felt, a sigh escaped the smaller man as they continued to kiss. It was sweet, for a moment Ed forgot Oswald was dead at all.

When he broke away from the kiss he expected to be alone or for Oswald to say one more thing to him before disappearing for good. Instead he was still in his arms, staring up at him with lust filled eyes.

“Oswald?”

“Yes, my dear?”

“What are you still doing here?”

“Well I was considering that and I think we should try something else.”

“Like what?”

“I think we should have sex, obviously there’s something you wanted to do with me that you didn’t get the chance to.”

Ed pulled away from the hallucination’s embrace, without a word he turned and left the bedroom.

He already knew Oswald would be waiting for him downstairs ready to whine that Ed was being unfair.


End file.
